


All I've Ever Learned from Love (Was How to Shoot Somebody Who Outdrew You)

by ConsultingWriter



Category: Kuroko no Basuke | Kuroko's Basketball
Genre: 00Agent!Kuroko, Assassin!Kagami, James Bond AU, KagaKuroExchange, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-05-24
Updated: 2016-05-24
Packaged: 2018-06-10 11:38:23
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,989
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6954973
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ConsultingWriter/pseuds/ConsultingWriter
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Once upon a time Kagami loved and was loved. When his long time boyfriend--Kuroko--broke his heart, however, he changed. Now a heartless world class assassin, what will Kagami do when he runs into Kuroko once more? </p>
<p>For  Cndshin (sumeragishin) and KagaKuroExchange on tumblr.</p>
<p>
  <i> “Come on Taiga,” the target pleaded on his ass, inching backwards across the floor.</i>
</p>
<p>
  <i>His name sounded sour on that man’s lips and the sound of it enraged him. He let the cock of his hammer serve as his response.</i>
</p>
<p>
  <i>“I love you!” The man blurted, trying to hold Kagami’s gaze to communicate his sincerity, “For the love of God, have a heart; I love you!”</i>
</p>
<p>
  <i>He couldn’t take the pleading any longer.</i>
</p>
<p>
  <i> A hollow ghost of a smile spread across his lips, “I’m sorry, baby,” he pulled the trigger.</i>
</p>
<p>
  <i>The bullet hit true and Kagami simply watched as the life drained out of the man’s eyes. He sat the gun down, kneeled beside the target, leaned down to press his signature kiss against the man’s cheek.</i>
</p>
<p>
  <i>Before his lips made contact he paused to continue his earlier thought, “But my heart doesn’t work anymore, it was broken years ago.” </i>
</p>
            </blockquote>





	All I've Ever Learned from Love (Was How to Shoot Somebody Who Outdrew You)

**Author's Note:**

> So here's part one of two. It's turned out longer and agnstier then originally planned. 
> 
> Cndshin (sumeragishin), I hope you like it!
> 
> Unbeta'd as usual.

Kagami Taiga let the silk sheet slide off his body as he stood from the overly plush bed. His bed partner barely stirred, only moved enough to roll into the warm spot he’d left behind, and Kagami watched him for just a moment before he turned away. He sauntered across the room, unzipped his travel bag, and pulled out a tube of lipstick and the small box that had been tucked beneath several sets of neatly folded clothes. He flipped it open and smiled down at the contents of the box; his bed partner would be blown away by what was inside.

The lipstick felt natural on his lips by now and he applied it with a precision that came with practice as he smoothed a thick, even coating on his lips. _Scarlett Empress_. He chuckled at the shade’s name and capped the tube. He popped his lips and glanced over his shoulder to look at the large mirror that hung on the wall beside the bed. The shade looked good against his skin, and he took a moment to admire how it brought out his eyes; his vanity amused him sometimes and he wondered when he’d become so interested with his looks. Probably around the time that looking good became part of the job. After a moment he turned away from the mirror and back to the task at hand.

Carefully he lifted the ring from the velvet it rested on and slid it on his left ring finger. It fit like a glove, just as it had the first time he’d tried it on. He stroked the cold gold band with his thumb before pulling out the box’s other prize: a semi-automatic pistol with a silencer. Yes, really would just blow his lover away.

He cocked the hammer and pressed it gently to the man’s graying temple. It was easy to pull the trigger and he didn’t even blink as warm blood splashed over his face and naked flesh. He leaned over, lips hovering over a cooling cheek, before he pressed a gentle kiss to it, leaving behind a lipstick print. It was almost a perfect lip impression and he pulled away, satisfied with his work.

Kagami was almost lazy in the way that he pulled his clothes on, unconcerned about the stiffening body lying on the bed. Once his shoes were on, he padded over to the bedside trashcan and pulled the small bag out of it and tied it shut. No sense in leaving behind any evidence; there was a difference between confidence and arrogance, after all. With one last look in the mirror he packed his bag up and left, making sure to close the door behind him.

‘Kitty Legsworth,’ the feared American assassin, had just added one more body to ‘her’ kill count.

0o0o0o0o0o

M stared at him from across the large mahogany desk, mismatched eyes taking in every detail of him as he stood there with his hands clasped behind his back. Agent 001, Kuroko Tetsuya, met M’s eyes unflinchingly and waited patiently for the other man to start talking.

“001,” M’s voice was steady and deep, commanding in a way that was almost incomprehensible, “you have proven time and time again that you are our best stealth agent with a high aptitude for teamwork.”

Kuroko stayed silent, he knew all of this, M knew all this, and he knew that M knew all of this. He didn’t know why M had called him in but he knew that praising his diligent work wasn’t the reason.

“Which is why I’m assigning you to work with Agent 006 on this mission,” M slid a folder across the desk.

M paused for a moment as Kuroko slowly flipped through the folder’s contents.

The information was on Hanamiya Makoto: an arms dealer who dabbled in several other equally illegal ventures. He tended to lay low and flew under the radar of most government agencies. Lately though, he’d been expending his empire and, according rumor, he had stepped up into dealing government secrets as well as weapons. 001’s job would be simple, get in, confirm the rumor, and get out.

Kuroko closed the file and met M’s eyes once more, unsure as to why he was being paired with Agent 006 for a simple reconnaissance mission.

M’s fingers where steepled underneath his chin, “We aren’t the only people out for Hanamiya’s blood. I’ve heard whispers that the American’s have also dispatched someone to deal with him.”

Kuroko didn’t see what the issue was, they’d worked in tandem with the Americans before and it had never been an issue.

“Unfortunately our goals don’t line up with theirs, we want Hanamiya captured and brought in for questioning. They want him dead and have taken drastic measures to make sure he ends up that way.”

M turned away and pressed a button, the intercom on his desk buzzed to life, “Agent 006, you may come in now.”

The door behind Kuroko opened and Agent 006 stepped through, shoulders in a loose slouch and posture completely relaxed and unprofessional.

Agent 006 was tall, strong, and loud; a painful reminder of someone from Kuroko’s past and as such, the smaller man took great pains to avoid 006 at all costs. Dark blue eyes cut over to size Kuroko up before they flicked over to M.

“Really?” he questioned, raising a hand to dig his pinkie into his ear, “You’re assigning him to be my babysitter?”

Mismatched eyes twitched like they wanted to roll but M had too poise for that and instead the other male simply sighed as if the darker man was simply too stupid to deal with, “Once again, 006, you’ve jumped to the wrong conclusion.

You and 001 will be working on the same mission but you will be handling different aspects. 001 will gather information on Hanamiya and you, 006, will be on the lookout for Kitty Legsworth.”

Tan features screwed up, “Who?” 006 asked belligerently.

M sighed again and slid another folder across the table, Kuroko and 006 both leaned closer to get a look. No pictures, just page after page of confirmed kills and details.

“Ms. Kitty Legsworth is perhaps the most prolific assassin of the century, as you can see from her count. She’s a ghost, not officially with any American agency and yet no other country has taken credit for her training. No one knows who she is or where she came from; only that she is very good at what she does.”

006 was grinning now, like he’d just won the lottery, and Kuroko felt a shiver down his spine. This woman was a monster and 006 seemed eager to go against her.

“The two of you will have the rest of the evening to prepare, your plane leaves at 7:30 in the morning, your tickets are digital and you will need to pick up your phones from Quartermaster along with anything else he sees fit to send you off with, and 006, try not to destroy anything this time.”

With that they knew they were dismissed. Kuroko slowly made his way to the Quartermaster in an attempt to drag his time at work out, unenthusiastic about the idea of returning to the empty apartment that hadn’t felt like home in years.

0o0o0o0o0o0

“Come on Taiga,” the target pleaded on his ass, inching backwards across the floor.

His name sounded sour on that man’s lips and the sound of it enraged him. He let the cock of his hammer serve as his response.

“I love you!” The man blurted, trying to hold Kagami’s gaze to communicate his sincerity, “For the love of God, have a heart; I love you!”

He couldn’t take the pleading any longer.

 A hollow ghost of a smile spread across his lips, “I’m sorry, baby,” he pulled the trigger.

The bullet hit true and Kagami simply watched as the life drained out of the man’s eyes. He sat the gun down, kneeled beside the target, leaned down to press his signature kiss against the man’s cheek.

Before his lips made contact he paused to continue his earlier thought, “But my heart doesn’t work anymore, it was broken years ago.”

The admission was whispered, barely even filling the air between them, and Kagami pressed his lips to the cooling cheek after it left his tongue. A secret was only good between two people if one of them was dead.

He stood up and stretched his back out as he heaved a sigh; another job well done. He packed his gun away carefully but paused when his phone vibrated in the front pouch of his bag. The text was short and to the point, just the way he liked them.

_Makoto Hanamiya: last seen in Japan. $2.5 for confirmed kill._

Kagami whistled lowly at the price; two point five million dollars for a single hit? The man must be bad news.

He chuckled—sounded like fun. He sent a simple ‘C’ in reply to confirm that he’d be on the job. Well, that Kitty Legsworth would be on the job, anyway.

With that done and the scene cleared of any evidence that would link back to him, Kagami slipped out of the hotel room and out into the parking lot. His car was easy to spot, the only one of its kind in the entire parking lot.

The Lotus Elise gleamed in the daylight and looked like something that had rolled out of a car enthusiast’s magazine.

He crinkled his nose as he looked it over in the daylight. He shouldn’t have bought the blue one, he hated the color blue; but it had looked so good, gleaming like a fucking sapphire amongst all the black and white on the car lot. Whatever. He popped the door open and tossed his bag into the passenger’s seat before sliding in.

The car handled smoothly as he wove in and out of the L.A. traffic, speeding towards his condo. His condo. He chuckled at the thought as he pictured the large apartment in his mind, plush and comfortable furniture, large flat screen television, a fully stocked kitchen fit for a professional chef, and an ocean view. He’d come a long way from where he’d been ten years ago. Back then he’d been working two jobs to pay for college and sharing a shoebox apartment in Tokyo. His stomach clenched in his stomach but he brushed the pain aside, he’d left that behind and he was never going back.

Pulling up to a red light he turned his head to the side, glancing out of his window when he felt eyes on him. A little boy with large eyes stared at him, eyes drinking in the sight of his car, and Kagami tossed him a wink, a small smirk pulling at the edges of his lips.

Damn, it was good to have money.

 That evening he stood on his balcony and let the ocean breeze buffer his face. The sun was setting at a lazy California-west-coast pace and Kagami was content to watch it as it went down. He glanced at the ring on his finger and brought it to his lips. He pressed a soft kiss to it and then sneered at himself. Fuck. His hand came up to cradle his forehead as he barked out a sharp, mirthless ‘Ha!’

This was pathetic. He was pathetic.

_Kagami couldn’t control the bouncing of his knee under the table, he was so nervous he couldn’t keep his foot from jogging up and down. Kuroko would be there any second and he still hadn’t found the perfect thing to say. He’d never been good with words, that had always been Kuroko’s domain but tonight, tonight Kagami would need every sweet word he’d ever heard if he was going to pull this off. The ring box felt like lead in his pocket, weighing him down in a way that he never would’ve imagined. This was it. A weird sort of joyous-nervousness balled in the pit of his stomach. After eight years of dating he was going to do it. He was going to ask his boyfriend to marry him._

Foolish, he was foolish for thinking that his happiness was going to last. That sort of thing never did.

_Kuroko looked tired when he settled into the chair across from him and Kagami frowned lightly as he took his boyfriend in. School had been taking its toll on the smaller male recently, with graduation and exams coming up. Maybe he should wait to ask, he wanted to catch Kuroko in a good mood after all. No, he mentally shook himself. No. Now was the time. He deep a deep breath and tried to steady himself._

_“Tetsuya…” he started, hand reaching down into his jacket pocket. The strange look in his beloved’s eyes caused the words to catch in his throat._

_“Kagami-kun,” Kuroko started, his voice toneless in a way that Kagami hadn’t heard in years._

_The way that Kuroko said ‘Kagami’ instead of ‘Taiga’ made his lungs deflate and his skin itch. Something was wrong._

_“Kagami-kun, I’m sorry, but I don’t want this anymore.”_

_The beat of his heart stuttered at that but Kagami held himself together and pushed on, “Want what? Tetsuya,” he asked urgently, “What don’t you want anymore?”_

_“Us,” blue eyes bore into Kagami’s own, “I think our lives are going in different direction and I don’t want us anymore.”_

_“What the fuck does that even mean?” Panicking, Kagami Taiga was panicking._

_Kuroko looked away, unwilling to make eye contact. Panic stirred up into anger. What the hell was this shit? They’d been doing great, strong as always and suddenly Kuroko just doesn’t want ‘them’ anymore?_

_“Look at me when I’m fucking talking to you,” he snapped angrily._

_“Kagami-kun shouldn’t be so surprised,” Kuroko placated, “We weren’t going to last much longer anyways, Mother has started looking for my future bride.”_

_He was acting as if Kagami were a silly child and the redhead wanted to reach across the table and clock him one._

_Instead he straightened his back and held his head high as he met Kuroko’s stare._

_“Right,” Kagami said, just as blankly as Kuroko had, “I see.”_

_And he did, oh he really, really did; he was Kuroko’s ‘for now.’_

_He stood from the table, hand slipping into his pocket on reflex to hide the box that he’d been so excitedly fingering mere moments before, “I’ll be back for my things tomorrow.”_

_He made his way slowly to the door, hoping Kuroko would call him back and tell him it was just a shit joke. He didn’t. He waited on the steps of the apartment building for thirty minutes waiting for Kuroko to come after him. He didn’t._

_Kagami wondered if that breaking sound was his actual heart or if maybe he was just hearing things. It sounded like a jar hitting the cold kitchen floor, glass that would never be jigsawed back together again._

_There went his ‘forever.’_

The next day he’d packed his shit, left all their shared belongings, and hopped on the first plane back to America. It hadn’t been easy to get things with the university settled over the phone but he’d done it. Three months later he’d been found by a group of ex-spy types that called themselves Seirin and he’d never looked back. Money as an assassin was good and he’d long ago decided that if he couldn’t have what he wanted he’d take everything he could get.

And it turned out that with the right words and motions he could get a lot: men and women and money and jewelry and cars and clothes.

 He might not have the love of his life but he was certain that what he did have was a hell of a lot better.

0o0o0o0o0o0

Makoto Hanamiya wasn’t hard to find. Men like him never were, if one knew where to look, and Kagami knew exactly where to look. The bass was thumping and the floor of the club was flooded with grinding bodies. Large groups of giggling girls crowded into small booths as men leered, sizing them up to see which girl he had the best chance with.

Kagami crossed the room, eyes scanning the crowds for his target. He wasn’t on the first floor, not that Kagami had thought he was; big wigs like Hanamiya never slummed it on the floor with everyone else.

Instead Hanamiya was on the second floor of the club, tucked away in a dark corner. His sharp black suit matched his dark hair and menacing eyebrows to a T. It was, if Kagami was honest with himself, a little sexy—but not nearly sexy enough to distract him from his job.

Kagami brushed passed Hanamiya’s guards and the small gathering of women who were throwing the mysterious man in the booth flirtatious looks. What was it about bad boys that seemed so appealing? Kagami could never figure it out. His type, when that kind of thing had mattered, had always been sweet things who liked to cuddle after they fucked.

He slide confidently into the booth and pressed close the Hanamiya. His outfit was simple but appealing, he wanted to catch Hanamiya’s attention but not anyone else’s; his black tank top clung to his chest and back while his tight jeans hugged his strong thighs and cupped his ass nicely. The tight outfit was twofold in Kagami’s plans, it was attractive and it subtly showed Makoto that he wasn’t carrying a weapon on him.

It was all for show, of course; he had a switchblade tucked into the side of his knee high boots, but no one would know that until it was too late.

“Who the hell do you think you are?” the man snapped, fingers wrapping around Kagami’s wrist like a steel vice.

Kagami smirked and leaned close, letting his lips press against the shell of Makoto’s ear, “I’m whoever you want me to be.”

The other snorted, “Does that work for you very often?”

Kagami’s tongue flicked out to tease the ear in front of his face, “Doesn’t matter if it works often, what matters is if it’s working right now.”

Makoto chuckled, “Come a little closer and you might find out.”

Said the spider to the fly. Kagami smirked to himself, if only Makoto knew that he wasn’t the spider in this situation. Oh well, Kagami liked his targets better when they were clueless and he had this one right where he wanted him.

He slid closer and tucked himself into Makoto’s side and the other man slipped his arm around Kagami’s shoulders, a gesture of temporary possession.

The suit felt expensive against his bare skin and Kagami leaned back into it, absently wondering if he should draw this out some and see if he could get some expensive gifts out of the deal. He tossed the idea to the side almost immediately after a brief second of consideration; Makoto seemed like the type who wanted his lovers to bleed and Kagami really wasn’t into that.

The arm around his shoulder tightened as a group of men zeroed in on the table. They surrounded the table and casually sat down. The leader, a man who was just slightly better dressed then the rest, leaned across the table and met Makoto’s stare head on.

“Ah, Hanamiya, I presume?” the man spoke in English and Kagami tucked himself closer, leaning his head against Makoto’s shoulder, and pretended he couldn’t understand what was being said.

“You presumed correctly,” Makoto’s return was cool and the hand around Kagami’s shoulder slid up the back of his neck to fiddle with his hair, “What business do you have with me?”

The hand in Kagami’s hair massaged his scalp and tugged occasionally at the red strands, a pointed reminder that the newcomers were wasting his time.

The leader’s eyes flicked over Kagami, who looked back at him with a half lidded gaze, and he paused for just the briefest moments before he answered Makoto’s question in English.

Kagami tucked his head into Makoto’s shoulder and pretended to oblivious as they discussed their business. The hand on his hair slipped down to the base of his skull to keep his head in place.

“It’s recently come to my attention that you have plans for the latest atomic weapons, I was curious to know whether it was true or not,” the man leaned close in an attempt to intimidate Makoto but the man simply smirked, fingers caressing at the skin of Kagami’s neck lightly.

“I do, and for the right price, it could be yours.”

The man smirked at Makoto and leaned closer, “And what would the right price be, exactly?”

Makoto hummed and tapped his chin in faux thought. He pulled a piece of paper from his pocket and jotted a number down quickly before sliding it across the table. The man flipped it open and looked the number over; Kagami could tell he was thinking it over by the way the corners of his eyes tightened.

Kagami knew that no matter what the man bluffed, he wasn’t going to turn the deal down. The redhead doubted that the man would even try to negotiate out of fear of losing the deal completely.

Finally the man nodded and Makoto smirked, “Good, then come back tomorrow morning with the money and we can finish the transaction.”

His hand tightened around Kagami’s neck, not painfully but just so, and his voice dropped to a dark purr, “But for now, I have other _business_ to attend to.”

The other man smirked at the implication and dipped his head towards Makoto out of respect, “I hope any other business you may have this evening works out in your favor.”

With that he stood from the table and headed back down the stairs, his men following behind like ducklings.

Once the last man was out of sight Makoto pressed a kiss to Kagami’s neck, “Now,” he was back to speaking in Japanese, “how about we go somewhere else.”

“That,” Kagami husked, leaning into the kiss, “Sounds like the best idea I’ve heard all day.”

0o0o0o0o0o0

“Status report, 006,” Kuroko requested quietly as he ghosted through the compound, looking for anything that could be used against Hanamiya Makoto. So far he’d found nothing of great consequence to the mission—basic information about previous arms deals, a list of regular clients that could be useful later—and at this point he was starting to doubt that he would. The man was meticulous and smarter than a fox.

He could hear the other’s irritated sigh blast through his earpiece but ignored it, he hadn’t exactly been thrilled to work with 006 either. The door in front of him clicked open and he carefully pushed it open as he waited for 006’s report.

It was an office, Kuroko absently noted as he swept the room. No traps or hidden security. Hanamiya was confident, perhaps overly so. Kuroko booted the single computer up with light touches as he waited on 006’s report. Finally the other’s voice rumbled down the comm line.

“No sign of any dangerous-assassin women, the only person around is some big red-head with weird ass split eyebrows.”

Kuroko’s fingers paused over his keyboard at that, a big red-head with weird eyebrows? The description hit him like a one ton hammer but he swallowed and shrugged it off. Taiga was in America, probably living his dreams; running his own restaurant with a handsome husband or gorgeous wife at his side.

He ignored the pain that sparked in him at the thought; he’d brought this on himself the moment he’d chosen this career over Taiga. In his defense, however, he’d never thought it would hurt so much to lose Taiga. Of course he’d loved the big, loud, red-head—had known one day that he would happily marry the man—but then he’d been offered a once in a lifetime job opportunity to work for the government as a 00-agent and how could he say no to that? Wasn’t that what he was supposed to have done? Everyone had always said that one needed to put their futures before relationships and he had; but if that’s what he was supposed to do, if that was the right thing to do, why did he feel so miserable? The loss of Taiga was an open wound that refused to heal.

He closed his eyes and let the pain wash over him for a moment—this pain was his penance—before he pushed it away and continued to dig through files. Nothing, the computer was completely clean.

 The comm crackled to life again as Kuroko was shutting the computer down, “Hanamiya and Eyebrows are on the move, I’m going to track them. No sign of Kitten or Cat or whoever.”

Kuroko rolled his eyes at the other’s lazy drawl but hummed out an affirmative sound.

Once the computer was completely shut down and everything was arranged the way he’d found it Kuroko gave the room last look over and shut the door behind him and moved to the next room.

Twenty-five minutes, it took Kuroko twenty-five minutes to work his way through three more rooms. He’d just reached the last room at the end of the hallway, Haniamya’s bedroom, he noted immediately, when his comm crackled intimately in his ear.

“Where are you?” 006 hissed.

“West wing of the compound at the end of the hallway,” Kuroko reported blankly as he scanned the room over carefully.

“Shit,” there was a thump on the other end, like 006 had hit something out of frustration, “Hanamiya is on the way to there right now.”

“ETA?” Kuroko asked, frowning.

“5 minutes, at the most. Shit, I can’t believe this.” The last sentence was mumbled under 006’s breath but Kuroko heard it anyway.

As 006 was cursing and muttered to himself, Kuroko was looking for an escape route. He couldn’t make it out of the compound in less than five minutes and he definitely didn’t want to be caught trying to get out.

“They just pulled into the driveway,” 006 growled, “I’m going to circle the block and then come back around to keep an eye out for the she-assassin.”

Kuroko pursed his lips and mentally reviewed his options. He didn’t have many. With no other real options left he ducked into the large walk in closet to the side of the room and climbed onto the top shelf. Part of his appeal for the 00-agency was his low presence; he was nearly invisible to most people and could easily disappear when he wanted to.

He froze and started to take slow, measured breathes as the door to the bedroom opened and Hanamiya and his guest stumbled through. As the pair laughed, Kuroko felt his heart shatter in his chest.

That was Taiga’s deep rumble. Kuroko could recognize it even after so many years; how could he not? It haunted his dreams at night and teased at the edges of his conscience during the day. It was hard to keep his breathing steady as the heartbreak rocked him in waves; his jaw ached with the force it took to keep it from trembling as his eyes stung with tears.

This couldn’t be happening. Taiga was supposed to be in America, enjoying life with his lover and his restaurant, not in the Tokyo base of an infamous arms dealer. The question tugged at the edges of his mind. If that’s what was supposed to be Taiga’s life was supposed to be, than what _was_ he doing with Hanamiya?

“So,” one of the men, Kuroko guessed that it was Hanamiya, growled, “I think we should start conducting that business we were talking about earlier.”

Taiga chuckled and Kuroko shuddered at that husky, familiar laugh. It sent a spike of warmth down his spine and he welcomed the sensation; he hadn’t felt that warmth in so long, not since he’d broken up with Taiga. Along with the warmth, however, there was also a heavy sorrow. That laugh wasn’t directed at him and it never would be again and it was his own damned fault.

“Well then,” Taiga returned the banter easily, “I think you should get naked for me.”

After that Kuroko couldn’t hear anything but the rustling of clothes coming off bodies and hitting the floor. He was suddenly glad that he couldn’t see out into the room.

And suddenly everything changed, “You, what the hell?” Hanamiya growled and it wasn’t the throaty, sexy sound of before. It was hateful and angry.

“Sorry, but it seems you’ve pissed off the wrong person,” Taiga replied casually and then Kuroko heard the sound of gurgling.

Alarmed he dropped from his hiding spot and peaked out of the closet. What he saw shocked him to the core. His beloved stood proudly, coldly—statuesque—over the crumpled body of Hanamiya Makoto. A knife was clutched in that familiar tanned hand; blood dripped from the steel of the blade and was painted across Taiga’s clothes.

Blue eyes flicked down to take in Hanamiya. He looked like a marionette whose strings had been cut; he lay crumpled on the floor with his throat cleanly slashed open.

Kuroko couldn’t help but gasp through his nose at the scene. He couldn’t understand what he was looking at. His Taiga had been a gentle giant, strong and protective but unashamedly loving. This man, wearing his once lover’s face, was a stranger.

At Kuroko’s gasp the Taiga’s head snapped up and his eyes narrowed, focused on the closer where the sound had come from. The hand with the knife rose, the blade angled defensively, ready to fight off any attack.

“Come out,” the red head commanded and Kuroko complied, not having any other choice.

 “Taiga.”

Glacial red eyes took him in.

“Kuroko.”

**Author's Note:**

> As always you can find me at NoSwordsForLittleDragons.tumblr.com


End file.
